Original Research

Collagenase Enzymatic Fasciotomy for Dupuytren Contracture in Patients on Chronic Immunosuppression

Am J Orthop. 2015 November;44(11):518-521

References

1. Loos B, Puschkin V, Horch RE. 50 years experience with Dupuytren’s contracture in the Erlangen University Hospital—a retrospective analysis of 2919 operated hands from 1956 to 2006. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2007;8:60.

2. Coert JH, Nérin JP, Meek MF. Results of partial fasciectomy for Dupuytren disease in 261 consecutive patients. Ann Plast Surg. 2006;57(1):13-17.

3. Sennwald GR. Fasciectomy for treatment of Dupuytren’s disease and early complications. J Hand Surg Am. 1990;15(5):755-761.

4. Badalamente MA, Hurst LC. Enzyme injection as nonsurgical treatment of Dupuytren’s disease. J Hand Surg Am. 2000;25(4):629-636.

5. Badalamente MA, Hurst LC, Hentz VR. Collagen as a clinical target: nonoperative treatment of Dupuytren’s disease. J Hand Surg Am. 2002;27(5):788-798.

6. Hurst LC, Badalamente MA, Hentz VR, et al; CORD I Study Group. Injectable collagenase Clostridium histolyticum for Dupuytren’s contracture. N Engl J Med. 2009;361(10):968-979.

7. Mookhtiar KA, Van Wart HE. Clostridium histolyticum collagenases: a new look at some old enzymes. Matrix Suppl. 1992;1:116-126.

8. Watanabe K. Collagenolytic proteases from bacteria. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol. 2004;63(5):520-526.

9. Wang AS, Armstrong EJ, Armstrong AW. Corticosteroids and wound healing: clinical considerations in the perioperative period. Am J Surg. 2013;206(3):410-417.

10. Denkler K. Surgical complications associated with fasciectomy for Dupuytren’s disease: a 20-year review of the English literature. Eplasty. 2010;10:e15.

11. Stuck AE, Minder CE, Frey FJ. Risk of infectious complications in patients taking glucocorticosteroids. Rev Infect Dis. 1989;11(6):954-963.

12. Oikarinen A, Autio P. New aspects of the mechanism of corticosteroid-induced dermal atrophy. Clin Exp Dermatol. 1991;16(6):416-419.

13. Makinodan T, Santos GW, Quinn RP. Immunosuppressive drugs. Pharmacol Rev. 1970;22(2):189-247.

14. Röllinghoff M, Schrader J, Wagner H. Effect of azathioprine and cytosine arabinoside on humoral and cellular immunity in vitro. Clin Exp Immunol. 1973;15(2):261-269.

15. Genestier L, Paillot R, Fournel S, Ferraro C, Miossec P, Revillard JP. Immunosuppressive properties of methotrexate: apoptosis and clonal deletion of activated peripheral T cells. J Clin Invest. 1998;102(2):322-328.

16. Desai SS, Hentz VR. Collagenase Clostridium histolyticum for Dupuytren’s contracture. Expert Opin Biol Ther. 2010;10(9):1395-1404.

Discussion

Collagenase enzymatic fasciotomy appeared to be a safe and efficacious alternative to surgical treatment of Dupuytren contractures in this cohort of patients maintained on chronic immunosuppressive agents. MP contractures responded more substantially than PIP contractures did, as expected.⁶ No previously undescribed adverse outcomes were noted in these 8 patients on chronic immunosuppressive therapy beyond those reported in the CORD I trial. Three (23%) of the 13 collagenase injections in our series were complicated by skin tears after manipulation. Skins tears were reported in 22 (11%) of 204 patients after manual cord rupture in the CORD I trial.⁶ Given the limited numbers in this series, it remains unclear if chronic immunosuppression truly increases the risk of skin tears in this subset of patients. Other common treatment-related adverse events seen in the CORD I trial—injection-site hemorrhage (37%), pruritis (11%) and lymphadenopathy (10%)—were not seen after the 13 injections in our case series. We are prospectively following all patients with Dupuytren disease, and this is an area of ongoing research at our centers.

The immunosuppressive actions of prednisone, azathioprine, and methotrexate are well documented. Prednisone is a glucocorticoid, converted in the liver to prednisolone, which suppresses inflammation and immune responses by regulation of gene expression. Its immunosuppressive actions are multifactorial, relating to inhibition of lymphocytes, neutrophils, and monocytes. These effects are dose- and time-dependent¹¹ and may become evident in patients receiving low doses over prolonged periods. Skin atrophy¹² and delayed wound healing⁹ are side effects of long-term prednisone use. Skin atrophy may make the prednisone-treated patient more susceptible to skin tears after collagenase injection and manipulation. Azathioprine inhibits purine synthesis, which is especially important in the proliferation of immune cells.¹³ It has been shown to inhibit both cellular immunity at low doses and humoral immunity at higher doses.¹⁴ Methotrexate inhibits lymphocyte folic acid metabolism. The immunosuppressive properties of low-dose methotrexate have been linked to the induction of apoptosis in activated T cells.¹⁵

A more complex process in immunosuppressed patients is the immunogenicity of injected collagenase. As CHC in current use is a mixture of 2 foreign proteins, an immunologic response is expected in the host after injection. It has been shown that, after 3 injections of CHC into Dupuytren cords, 100% of patients developed antibodies to both enzymes in their serum.⁶ More than 85% demonstrated anti-CHC antibodies after a single injection. However, no patients showed signs of anaphylaxis or allergic reaction, and there was no correlation between serum levels of anti-CHC and adverse events. It has been hypothesized that there is a potential for cross-reactivity of the anti-CHC antibodies with human matrix metalloproteinases, causing enzymatic dysfunction within the host.¹⁶ This has yet to be reported clinically, and Xiaflex is currently under postmarketing surveillance. Immunocompromised people, with suppressed humoral and cellular immune responses, may produce less of an antibody response to the foreign CHC proteins. Whether this conclusively leads to a change in the side effect profile of the medication in these individuals is beyond the scope of this article. However, we identified no new side effects in this small but higher risk cohort. The issue should be continually monitored as collagenase is used in wider clinical settings.

Collagenase enzymatic fasciotomy is a new nonsurgical therapeutic option for Dupuytren disease. Indications and guidelines for use continue to evolve. This case series highlights the use of collagenase in 8 patients who were on long-term immunosuppressive therapy. This study has the limitations inherent to retrospective analyses. It is difficult to generalize results across broader immunosuppressed populations. A larger cohort, with long-term follow-up assessing recurrence of contracture, is needed to make definitive conclusions about use of collagenase in this challenging subset of patients. Based on our observations in this limited cohort, it appears appropriate to pursue further studies on use of collagenase enzymatic fasciotomy. A randomized, prospective or case–control series comparing surgical fasciectomy with enzymatic fasciotomy would yield further meaningful data. As more patients seek nonsurgical treatment for Dupuytren disease, its safety and efficacy in select cohorts of patients should continue to be evaluated.